McAdam: Possibility Bard starts season in Pawtucket

McAdam: Possibility Bard starts season in Pawtucket

Mike Giardi and Red Sox Insider Sean McAdam check in with "Inside Pitch" to take a look at Daniel Bard and what his season might look like.

Red Sox GM Ben Cherington said the Red Sox don't want to make this season a referendum on Daniel Bard. McAdam adds it would be a terrible thing for Bard if people went to him after every outing and asked 'How did it feel? How did it feel?'

Both Giardi and McAdam agree that Bard needs time to figure things out and re-build his confidence.

McAdam says Bard won't like to hear it but he does have an option left and it might be the best thing for him to start the season in Pawtucket. McAdam thinks the Sox should go to Bard in mid-March and tell him 'We're going to open you in Triple-A. You're going to be a big part of this bullpen, but you're probably going to be there on Opening Day."

There are basically nine pitchers fighting for seven spots. Bard's remaining option, coupled with his 2012 struggles make him a likelier candidate than most to start the season in Triple-A.

That doesn't mean he won't be a vital part of the bullpen come September.

The former Red Sox manager (fired after a 69-93 season and last-place finish in 2012), and ex-New York Mets and Texas Rangers, skipper, also managed the Chiba Lotte Marines in Japan’s Pacific League for six seasons.

Valentine, 66, has known the President-elect and Trump's brother Bob since the 1980s, is close to others on Trump’s transition team and has had preliminary discussions about the ambassador position, according to WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford.

Valentine, currently the athletic director of Sacred Heart University in Fairfield, Conn., is also friendly with current Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who, like Valentine, attended the University of Southern California.

"My career had fallen into an abyss because I was so complacent with things that I had already accomplished," Sandoval said. "I did not work hard in order to achieve more and to remain at the level of the player that I am and that I can be."

After dealing Travis Shaw to the Brewers, Sandoval is expected to be the Red Sox primary third baseman in 2017.

"I am not taking anything for granted," he said. "I am here to work hard. I'm not thinking about the position or not. I am starting from scratch, and I am here to show what I can do on the field."

The 30-year-old says he’s following a “really strict routine” this offseason, and it shows. In a recent photo, Sandoval appears noticeably thinner. Sandoval says his wife giving birth to “Baby Panda” has served as inspiration.

"Watching 'Baby Panda' grow up and that he gets the opportunity to see his father play in the majors for seven, eight more years, to get back to the success I had, that's my motivation every day," Sandoval said. "The people that I surround myself with now and my family, they are the key to my success. This has been a life lesson."